Connecting Essay 5

This is a photograph which i found on-line whilst researching the evidence of architectural design and construction. It is showing the construction site of building which is in the process of being built. i think the use of the formal element of reflection is adds a nice effect. It is showing the bottom of the large crate being lifted into the air by the crance. This gives a deeper look at the actual crate as it is showing a side of the crate which would not of been seen if the puddle was not there. Although there are no obvious signs that it is a construction sight, the men in yellow jackets implies that they are builders. The dark skies in the background is also showing evidence that the weather is unpredictable but the builders must actually continue with their work no matter what the weather is like.

I took this photograph on my evidence of damaged buildings shoot. This photo shows the building is damaged, as the structure has already been built so it is not showing the construction of the building just some repairs or improvements. This is showing a fenced off area which is restricted from the public due to safety reasons. The bright signs is telling people to avoid going in the fenced area and to take caution when being around it. This is because building sites are dangerous due to the machinery and equipment used. This photograph was taken on a reasonably damp day which implies that again the weather has affected the working conditions which may possibly make it even more dangerous than it already is.



These photographs are connected as they are both showing the same theme of construction as they are both building sites. They however do differ as the top one is on a wider much more open space whereas my photograph is taken in a closed area which is why there are visible signs telling children and the parents to stay away as it may put themselves or a child at danger. These signs may also be present on the first site but they are simply not in the photograph. They are both also similar in the way that the wetness of the ground implies it has been raining so the builders cannot control this factor but the must in fact continue. The first image is a lot darker due to the dark rain clouds where as in my photograph the clouds are light and so they brighten up the photograph. These images are both connected as they are showing the evidence that buildings are constructed and built by talented individuals,

Final Evaluation

When this project started, and i was given the 5 initial starting points, i thought that weather would be the best route to follow. But then when i tried to plan for weather shoots i realized that the weather is unpredictable and so it was almost impossible to plan a shoot in advance. During my initial shoot i tried to capture the current weather which was cold and damp, this limited the amount of photographs i could capture as it is hard to show this form of weather in an exciting way. This also made me realize that this was the typical British weather which i assumed would be consistent through several shoots and so it would limit the amount of photographs which were individual. After my initial shoot i decided to reconsider my chosen option.
After looking at the different mind map's which i made at the beginning of the project after receiving the initial starting points. I decided to go with evidence as i felt it was such a broad topic, which could be followed and developed in several different ways. As it was such a broad topic, it made it easy to plan for shoots and to find a large amount of objects/items to be the main focus of my photographs.
My first planned shoot was to go out and look for evidence that people had been there, this has a wide span of photograph opportunities as it could range from litter, to cigarette butts, footprints or objects discarded/ broken . I captured quite a lot of photographs as i found the shoot fairly simple. 
As my shoots continued from the evidence of people to buildings, vandalism etc i felt that i was struggling to continue on this route of damage etc as i was finding it difficult to come up with different ideas. I decided to focus on life experience as i thought this would be an interesting sub-topic. 
I began by focusing on male and female and so simply shot portrait photographs of different models, i then shot objects which fell into the feminine and masculine gender domains, things such as motorcycles, magazines and make up. Then whilst doing my photographer research i stumbled across Bobby Adams and i felt his work was inspiring as it showed the contrast of age on a person and between the genetics of two people from the same bloodline. I wanted to incorporate this into my own work. I decided i would take photographs of a few different models against a blank wall and use these to create work inspired by Bobby Adams. I put two models next to each other and this shows the contrast of genetics. I also took a self portrait and edited it next to one of me as a child, this has a similar overall effect as that of Bobby. 
My last shoot was one which focused on a subculture, this simply means a group of people with particular hobbies and intrests. As well as focusing on the life experience side of it i also wanted to bring in some of the tones of damage and vandalism from my earlier work. I went to an area which is a regular spot for people to hang around and participate in certain activities. By capturing the remains of one of these gatherings it gives an insight onto the type of people whom were there, 
Overall i feel my shoots for this project have been successful but if i was to improve on one thing it would be to take more photographs as some came out blurry or sometimes there was just not enough there to pick a good amount of straight images which made it harder to pick my best images at the end of the project. 
I felt my 5 hour exam went well, i travelled to Camden in London and i got loads of street art and other interesting objects/ buildings which correspond to the shoots at the beginning of the project. I felt i captured a lot of photographs which were of a good quality to use for my final pieces. 
On the other hand, i found the contextual work hard to keep up with. This project was totally independent compared to unit 1 and so it was quite a shock to the system. I found the research log difficult as i did not know how to find the photographers who took the photographs which related to my project, However with support from my peers and Paul, i used my time in class efficiently and got the work i had to do at college complete whilst leaving certain pieces to do at home that did not require the software on the college macs. 

Work Diary - Shoot 9

In this shoot i went and looked at areas in which teenagers hang out and i found a lot of litter they have left behind. This litter represents how they like to spend their free time which reflects their personalities and certain addictions such as alcoholism and smoking. 

This is a photograph of an empty beer bottle which has just been left inside the forest. I feel that the composition of this photograph is good as the photograph is only as tall as the bottle is, and there is not too much extra background in it. This photograph represents the subcultures of the people whom sit around and drink alcohol illegally or just somewhere where they will not be punished by parents etc. I feel this photograph could be improved if there was some more colour in the background by moving the beer bottle i could find a background which contrasts with the colour of the glass more. 

This photograph is showing the left over ash and burnt out logs which have been used to create a fire which was in the middle of other logs which i presume are used for people to sit around the fire. This again is representing the same way of socializing that the first photograph is showing. I feel i could improve this photograph if i had captured a lot more of the background in the photograph.

If i was to redo this shoot i would go to a different location to try and capture similar things which symbolize different subcultures and see if i could find any similarities or differences and then compare the two directly. 

Photographer 5

Anne Geddes
Anne's photography focus's on babies and their mothers during pregnancy but she captures them in interesting ways as they are dressed up as. Her imagery captures the 'beauty, vulnerability and purity' of children as she deeply believes that each and every child should be 'protected, nurtured and loved'. She has turned her photographs into greetings cards and even turned them into books showing all her photographs of the babies she has captured over the years. She shows the simple innocence of children in a way in which parents cherish.

This photograph is showing 3 babies in plant pots dressed as sunflowers. I feel this is really good way of showing the friendship/family bond of these three babies. They are all showing natural expressions as they at a young age and so they cannot pose. 

This photograph is showing 3 sleeping babies all in pea pod cases. There bodies are further covered in pea costumes to create the image that the babies head is meant to be the last  pea which is missing. I like the way that there are other peas around the outside of the 3 pods. The background of the image is also made up of smaller green circles. It could be a textured background but it gives the perception that they are much smaller peas. 

I think that this photograph showing two sleeping babies captures the babies innocence. The babies are shown as two sleeping angels which shows their innocence as angels are pictured as pure loving creatures so by dressing the babies up as angels it is making them appear in this way as well. The colour of the feathers in the background contrast with the white of the angel wings. 

The child in this photograph is slightly older than the other babies in the other 3 photographs, but this just shows that she can work with a variety of ages. The theme of this portrait is 'under the sea', this creates the illusion that the babies are sea creatures and the background and props have been selected to help create this image. I like this photograph as it is creative and it shows that the child is happy to be posing as a fish.

Her work has inspired me as i would like to try and be more creative when taking portraits of people etc because it may be easy to get older models to dress up and pose for the camera. I feel the added creative side will make portraits which would've been quite plain and boring more interesting and appealing to those looking at my photographs. 

In summary I like Anne Geddes' work as i feel that it is very creative and unique compared to a lot of baby/portrait photographers. She has such a good imagination and i like the way she uses it to create such different photographs. If i was to focus on portraits in my work i would like to think of abstract ideas also. 

Final Images

Portfolio

Photographer 4

Nicholas Goodden

Nicholas Goodden is an urban London photographer, and he has a passion for capturing London's landscape, streets, people and architecture. The techniques that he uses still photography, cinemagraphs and timelapse photography. He captures an abstract side to London and things which other photographers do not, such as the street art and graffiti. 

This is a photograph of the millennium bridge, but Nicholas has edited it in such a way that the sky has a pink tint to it and the rest of the London landscape in the background is dark and so the bright blue lights illuminates the walkway and it is what you focus on when looking at the image. 

This is a photograph of some graffiti on the side of a building in London, i like the way the colours of the building and the graffiti are all in colour and the sky is in black and white. This makes the colours of the different paints used stand out more and look bolder, in contrast to the darker colours of the building and the sky. 

This is another photograph of a sign on the side of a building, i like the way he has captured the different sides of the building as it is showing the different angles and the spontaneous act of putting up the sign on the side of an average building where everyone can see it. I also like the tone and filter which is covering the image as it makes it appear to be glowing as there is a soft sepia tone to the photo. 

This is a photograph of a black taxi cab which had been shot with a slow shutter speed as to gain the effect that the car is moving quickly in relation to the background and the only thing which is in clearer focus is the cab. This is so that our focus is drawn to the taxi as it is showing something which is almost famous in London's culture as they are seen all over London. 

I feel his work has influenced me as i feel that i now want to go to London to try and capture some of the abstract things in and around London which add to the culture of it. I feel London is a beautiful place and the way Nicholas captures it is inspiring. The different techniques and angles he uses are interesting as they are not like many other photographers who captures their work in London. 

In summary i feel that Nicholas's work is inspiring as it is showing the parts of  London some may look down upon such as the graffiti, and others that people feel are iconic like the architecture when thinking about London. I feel his passion for London is shown through his photography as it is clear that he loves the things his photographs are focusing on. 

Connecting Essay 2

This is a photograph i found online whilst looking at shadow photography, i like the way this photograph has a shadow but it does not show how the shadow was made apart from the shoes which would've been what somebody was wearing to create the shadow originally. i like this photograph as it creates the illusion that somebody is standing there when there isn't. I like the way the photographer has merged the two different photos together to create one optical illusion.

This is one of my photographs which i took on a shoot. It was a sunny day and so there was plenty of shadows, i took it from a birds eye angle so i captured both my shoes and the shadows. I like this photo because the composition of it is good as there is not too much excess space around the focal point of the image. I tried not to get much of my legs in the shot as i felt this would ruin the effect of the image.

This images are both connected was they are both showing shadow photography, they are showing part of the object but not the whole object of what made the shadow itself, the professional photograph is more complex as it has been edited in a way that the shows are just the shoes and my photograph just doesn't get my feet in the image. However i like the effect that both of these photographs have in which they are creating shadows but not fully showing how. 

Connecting Essay 3

This is a photograph i found online whist looking at different street art / graffiti photographs, i liked this one as they have painted the art onto the garage door instead of on a wall as graffiti usually is. I like this  image as the bright colours of the paint which has been used contrast with the dark background of the black garage  door. I also like how there is separate graffiti next to the garage door which is showing that there is a lot of creative people whom like to express themselves in this manner. 

This is my photograph which i took whilst shooting for my exam in Camden, it was advertising a shop or a market stand but it was done in a way in which draws passers by to look at is as it is a creative and interesting way to get customers attention, as it is using graffiti which is something which is present all over the walls of Camden. I like this photo because again it uses bold colours against the black colour of the shutter. 

These photographs are connected as they are both showing graffiti in London, as well as the contrast of the bold colours against the black background. I like the way both of these photographs use such bright colours against the dark background which makes the writing stand out. These photographs are both showing the creativeness of people who live in London, as they are both either showing an image which has been created by an individual or an advertisement designed by an individual. 

Connecting Essay 4

This is a photograph that i found online whilst looking at London photography before my Exam. I liked the way it shows the signpost in the foreground and Big Ben in the background, it makes the signpost appear bigger than Big Ben but in real life, Big Ben is much larger. I like this idea as it is creating a surreal image, as it is appearing as something it is not. The black sign post contrasts with the colour of the sky as it is black so the clouds and writing on the sign post stand out more than they would if the sign post was white. 

This is one of the photographs i took when i went to London for my exam. It was in Camden Market, and i thought i'd capture the different ways the signs were pointing as i felt it shows a great sense of journey. The background was not that interesting as it was in an enclosed area, so the windows of the building were a nicer background than just a market stand. I like the way that the colours on the signpost are bold and brighten the image. 

These photographs are both connected as they are both showing sign posts in London, there are just in different parts of London. They are also connected as both of the backgrounds are a shade of blue, mine being lighter as it is merely a reflection of the sky itself. I like these photographs as it is showing that London is a vast place and that there is several different ways in which you can choose to go.